Love & Malice
by Dr. Phil E. Sophical
Summary: All is fair in love and war, but what happens when the two combine? When war is tearing the world apart, what happens to desire? Can romance survive in a world of such love and malice? That's the question. The question it took a world wide war to answer.
1. Sunday Morning

**Chapter 1: Sunday Morning**

** Okay, I've been looking through my repertoire lately, and I've come to a realization. It seems that every story I have published thus far fits one of two categories: poetic or comedic. There is one exception, as I would consider **_**The Man in the Black Socks**_** to be more spiritual than anything. The point is, I seem to lack a story that is pure and serious romance.**

** Now I'm looking to change that. I already had a story in the works (**_**Riddle Me This**_**) which would be yet another comedic romance to add to my archives. Instead, I took a few pieces of the plot and tweaked them, modified them, rearranged them. This story is the result of that.**

** I guess you can consider this my pokemon-ified version of **_**War and Peace**_** meets **_**Casablanca**_**, with a little **_**West Side Story**_** thrown in for good measure. The important thing to know is that this story is a romance (with some potential tragedy mixed in). **

** Also, some of you may be worrying about my ability to stick with this story (seeing as I have several unfinished stories as of late). I assure you, I've got this whole story mapped out, from start to finish. Writer's block is out of play. Now it's just a matter of how quickly I can write quality chapters.**

** Anyways, enough blabbering about that. Let's start the story.**

** Disclaimer:**

** Pokémon is the property of Nintendo.**

** Gavin is the property of PichuAuraGuardian18**

* * *

"May, you're getting on that plane." Ash said. "You've got to understand."

"Why?" May questioned in return. "Why can't you come with me?"

"May," Ash began. He paused and sighed. "It's for the best."

"How?" The young brunette doubted. "How can this possibly be the best choice?"

It was an early Sunday morning, in the middle of summer, around July, but it didn't feel that way. No soft and gentle breeze blew. No pidgey's chirped in the trees. No soft yellow sun shone in the sky. None of the sounds summer brings pierced the haunting silence. The only noise breaking the lull was the continuous soft whirring of plane propellers.

Three people stood on the runway of a small airfield that had sprung up on the outskirts of Vermillion City. Two were men, cousins actually. The third was a beautiful young brunette. Their presence was not that of a joyous reunion which summer so often brings along with it. Rather, it was a solemn and despairing splitting of lovers.

That description however warrants a new question. If such a meeting was that of lovers, then why did two different men accompany the young woman? Many a people would venture a guess that, perhaps, they are both suitors of that same woman, but that is far from the case. Some would even go as far as saying that you could make an assumption further from the truth than that.

You see, two of the people standing on the runway that Sunday morning were actually quite well known in the world. At least, back in those days they were.

The first was May. She was a young adult at the time of the war, somewhere in her early twenties. She was best known for her work as a Pokémon coordinator. In her career, she managed to claim the title of Grand Champion five times, in consecutive years none the less. At the time, that was a record breaking feat. Needless to say, she was sitting on the top of the heap as far as coordinators go. There wasn't a coordinator out there who didn't know her name or recognize her face.

Unfortunately, her fifteen minutes of fame came and went. She missed her sixth consecutive title by mere fractions of a point in the final round of the Kanto Grand Festival for that year. Don't be mistaken. That wasn't the end of her career. She competed for several years after that. Sadly though, she was unable to replicate her previous success. It was undeniable that, after that year, her career went into a downward spiral, and never recovered.

May retired from her coordinator career at the age of eighteen, which was roughly ten years before the war broke out. As those ten years progressed, her accomplishments seemed smaller and smaller as new coordinators matched and surpassed her achievements. Slowly but surely her name faded from prominence, until her achievements were all but forgotten.

Then there was the first of the two men: Ash. At the time, he was a retired Pokémon trainer. He was in his later twenties when the war broke out, and he definitely wasn't getting any younger. His spiky raven hair was becoming a softer shade of black, and it was particularly evident in his facial features just how much he had aged. Not everything changed though. He still wore his trademark red baseball cap, and he still carried his pikachu on his shoulder.

Much like May, Ash was fairly well known at a time. However, he was known better for what happened after his retirement from training, rather than his achievements while he was still competing in the leagues.

You see, many years before this war broke out, Ash competed in the Lily of the Valley Conference of the Sinnoh League. He made it to the semi-finals, before being defeated by a trainer named Tobias, who had entered the conference with a team full of legendary Pokémon. Needless to say, Tobias easily won the conference.

It was quite a devastating loss for the young raven haired trainer, but he chose not to dwell on it and moved onto his next challenge: The Unova League. He did well in the conference tournament, though not quite as well as he had in Sinnoh. After he completed his run in the Unova League, Ash retired from Pokémon training. As far as the public eye could see, he had left his crushing defeat in the Lily of the Valley Conference behind. To him, it was a thing of the past. It just wasn't about worrying about when all was already said and done.

Some people, on the other hand, weren't quite as willing to let go. After seeing an increasing trend of trainers like Tobias, who came into leagues with teams consisting solely of legendary Pokémon, many people began to cry foul. Protests sprang up. Speeches were given addressing the issue. At one point, people even started to boycott the Pokémon League and the gyms in all the regions.

Most of the protesters shared a common goal: get the use of legendary Pokémon banned from League Conferences. In the eyes of some, it was abuse of the power of legendary Pokémon. In the eyes of some others, it was purely an unfair advantage against other trainers who were competing.

In some ways, they were right. Anyone who was alive when it happened will gladly remind you of what happened when Lawrence III captured Moltres and Zapdos as part of his scheme to capture Lugia. It nearly led to the destruction of the world. Few people dare to imagine what would have become of life as we know it had Lawrence III succeeded.

Most people agree something like that must not happen again. It's too big of a risk to leave on the table. Many who are devoted to the cause of preventing another such case argue that every and all possible precautions must be put into place. To many people, banning legendary Pokémon from being used in leagues is just another way of preventing potential disaster.

On the other hand, the other half of their argument is a moot point. Trainers who use legendary Pokémon have no real advantage. At least, not an unfair one.

Most people wouldn't argue that legendary Pokémon tend to prove to be more powerful than normal Pokémon. Pretty much any licensed trainer will agree on that point. Given that information, it isn't extremely difficult to see how some people may claim that using them is unfair. However, you have to consider all the work the trainers put into catching and training those legendary Pokémon. It's not small task, and few trainers are ever able to accomplish it. Why shouldn't those who accomplish it be able to use it? Just because they put more work into their training (enough to catch and train a legendary) doesn't mean that they have an unfair advantage.

The Pokémon League Board of Executives made sure to bring that up in their final address, but they also had to consider the protestor's first point. In the end, they were able to reach a resolution. Trainers would be limited to using one legendary in any given conference, thus minimizing concern about the "second coming of Lawrence", while still allowing trainers to use the full extent of their work.

How did that affect Ash? Well, several years after he competed in the Lily of the Valley Conference, the rule was added regarding legendary Pokémon. Some of the protestors began to argue that matches involving what had been deemed "an excessive amount of legendary Pokémon" ought to be redone. In support of their argument, the protestors started bringing up the names of trainers who had been defeated by teams of legendary Pokémon. When they had a decent list, they started contacting the listed trainers in hopes of gaining some support for the cause.

How does that bring any attention to Ash in particular? It may seem odd, since Ash was one of several hundred trainers contacted. What really set him apart from the rest was how he responded when asked if he would like a rematch.

"No. I don't want a rematch with Tobias. At least, not on those terms I don't. If I ever get a rematch with him, I want it to be because we both _want_ to, not because one of us is obligated to, just for the sake of settling some disputed match years ago. Sure, I was disappointed when I lost, but I lost to a good trainer. There's no shame in losing to a great trainer like him."

Most people didn't forget about his response quickly. Of all the trainers who were asked, he was the only one that said a flat-out no to a legendary-free rematch.

Of course, as was the case with May, the recognition didn't last forever. The league ruled against holding rematches, and the issue was resolved once and for all. Slowly, the issue faded from relevance. No one talked about it. The news stopped mentioning the controversy. It became just another memory of the past.

Lastly, there was Ash's cousin, Gavin. He was slightly older than Ash. He was in his early-thirties at the time. He had short, slightly spiked, brown hair, and the brown eyes to match it. He typically wore a blue-collared button down shirt, which he almost always left open, with a black t-shirt underneath. He wore a pair of blue jeans and red and black sneakers, and he completed his look with a pair of black sunglasses.

Rather surprisingly, there wasn't much family resemblance between Gavin and Ash. In fact, most people wouldn't see any similarity at all.

Gavin stood at something around five feet and eleven inches. He was particularly muscular, but he wasn't particularly scrawny either. All in all, his physical build was fairly average, as was a great deal of his appearance. Everything from his lightly tanned skin to his caramel brown eyes screamed stereotype. He was what most people might describe as a cross between Average Joe and Teen Dream Boat Lover-boy. Needless to say, it was an interesting appearance, and it bore little resemblance to his first, and only, cousin.

Unlike his cousin, Gavin wasn't particularly well known. True, he had traveled the regions, and he had done fairly well on his journey, but nothing about what he did stood out quite like what Ash and May did. That's not to say he wasn't a good trainer. As a matter of fact, he was a very strong battler. His downfall was his uncertainty. He had a bad habit of questioning his choices. He didn't do it all the time, but on the occasions he did, it was apparent that it hurt his ability to win. In all honesty, were it not for his continuous questioning of his choices, he may have risen to even greater fame than his cousin. With his abilities and the extra confidence, he could easily have become a champion.

Alas, it was not to be. Gavin completed his competition in the leagues of all the regions, and like many a trainer before him, he retired from training. Well, he didn't retire entirely. Actually, few people did. He still kept his team with him, and he still battled fairly often, he just stopped the continuous travel from region to region and gym to gym. For the most part, his serious training career was forgotten. Even he found himself troubled to remember parts of it.

None of that's really important though. What really matters is what happened to these three after their journey's ended, and how that led to the three of them standing on that runway on a foggy and gray Sunday morning.

For now, it is best to make a long story short. Ash and May fell in love, which is another story entirely, but that's a story for another time. Anyways, things started to get rough between the two of them over the months and years. Eventually, they made a mutual agreement that they needed to spend some time apart.

Having made that decision, the two went their separate ways. Unfortunately, their feelings for each other diminished none, and they found themselves longing to be together again. They arranged to meet in Alto Mare. They would share a romantic dinner on the canals, and they would finally get their relationship worked out and functioning again.

Alas it wasn't so.

They met like they had planned. They had their dinner. They had a few drinks with that dinner. As always, or so it seems, things took a distinct turn for the worse when alcohol became involved.

As they finished their dinner, they continued to talk. About their relationship. About their hopes. About their dreams of the future. Now, by this point Ash had consumed what some would call a fair amount of alcohol. He wasn't full-on drunk, but there were some side-effects of all the drinks he had consumed by that point.

They finished their meal. By this time, it was fairly late, and they send their goodnights. They both slept soundly that night. They had no reason to worry. At least, they were unaware of any reason to worry. However, when May awoke, she found that she should have been worried.

Sometime during the night, Ash left his hotel room. He took all his belongings with him. He left his room key at the front desk, and he left Alto Mare.

Instead of remaining in Alto Mare, he made his way to Vermillion City. He settled in there. He arranged a place to stay. He got a job working at the city's gym alongside Lt. Surge. He created a whole new life for himself, and May never knew where he had gone.

With Ash out of her life once more, May returned to life as it had been the last time they were apart. Much like in the prime of her coordinating career, she continued to travel around the regions, though she no longer competed in contests. Life went on, just as it should.

Then the war broke out.

May was in Kanto at the time, Lavender Town to be specific. Seeing as the region had not become involved in the war yet, it took a while for May to get news of the war. By the time she heard what was happening, it was too late. By that time, the Alexandrians had occupied Hoenn. She was unable to return home. The Allies, in response, had occupied Johto, so she couldn't leave the Kanto region by land. Sinnoh was occupied as well. As a matter of fact, it was the hearth from which the Alexandrian movement spread. First it hit Unova, doing so with very little resistance. It was at that time that a resistance force began to emerge, primarily in Hoenn and Johto. Unfortunately, the resistance was unable to impede the advancement of the Alexandrian troops. Hoenn had fallen, leaving the rebellion with occupied Johto and Kanto, which was technically a neutral region in the war, though everyone knew that Kanto supported the resistance. As a result of these events, May was left stranded in the Kanto region.

Meanwhile, things were very different for Ash. For a short time, he continued to work alongside Lt. Surge at the Vermillion City Pokémon Gym. Then the day came that things changed.

At this time, the war was slowly spreading into Hoenn. Lt Surge, who strongly supported the resistance movement, decided to take leave from his duties as gym leader in order to help the war effort. However, instead of naming Ash as his replacement, as would seem fair considering all the work Ash had done recently, Surge chose one of his old comrades from the last war: Sergeant Pepper.

Ash wasn't very happy about the turn of events. He became quite angry at the lieutenant, and he ended up quitting his position at the gym. Once he left the gym, he started looking for a new way to make a living in the city. He could have gotten a job at any number of businesses in Vermillion City, but after what happened between him and Surge, he wasn't too keen on the idea of working for someone.

So he started his own business.

By this point, all the regions except Kanto had been occupied by the war. Some were occupied by the Alexandrians. Some were occupied by the Allies in Resistance. Technically, the Sevii Islands and Orange Islands were neutral at the time, but anyone wishing to travel to them was still required to hold an officially issued visa.

Now, in those days of the war, visas were not easy to come by. A vast majority of the visas issued were issued for officers or dignitaries involved in the war in some way. Normal citizens were hard pressed to obtain a visa, unless they had close ties with a member of either side's forces.

At the time, visas were required for travel between almost any regions. In fact, in all the regions aside from Kanto, visas were required for travel between cities as well. The requirements were established very early in the war. As a result, many travelers were stranded in other regions, with no way to get home. In Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Unova tourists became stranded in whatever city they happened to be in when the war broke out, because they required visas to leave those cities, and few of the travelers were able to obtain those necessary papers. In Kanto, stranded travelers were free to move about the region at their leisure, but when it came to traveling between Kanto and other regions, they were only able to go as far as Vermillion City.

As a result, Vermillion City nearly tripled in size. This was largely due to the massive and constant stream of travelers who showed up in the city in hopes of obtaining visas in order to leave Kanto and return to their homes, or to take refuge in one of the remaining neutral territories. The other portion of the increased population came from business men in women who moved into the city in hopes of taking advantage of the stranded travelers' circumstances.

Ash was one of these men. Upon leaving his job at the city's gym, he opened up his business: A piano bar that he named "The Alley Meowth". Technically, he was the cofounder of the business, with the other being a piano player named Billy whom he had met when he first arrived in Vermillion City.

The business became successful almost immediately. In fact, it became a landmark attraction of the city practically overnight. Some people attribute the business' success to Billy, and Billy seemed to think so too. Years later, when the war was over and The Alley Meowth had shut its doors, Billy commented "He knew it was me they were coming to see, to forget about life for a while." Oddly enough, a majority of people disagreed. They all saw the primary reason as having something to do with Ash.

Where was Gavin during all of this? Well, when the war began, Gavin had been traveling in Eastern Kanto. He happened to be in Lavender Town when the visa requirements were first established. However, unlike all the travelers who flocked to Vermillion City in hopes of attaining a set of papers, Gavin remained in Lavender Town. He didn't mind staying in the Pokémon center, and the sparsely inhabited town offered much better living conditions than the over-crowded streets of Vermillion City.

With that reasoning, Gavin spent the first couple months of the war staying in Lavender Town. However, he eventually grew tired of what little the town had to offer. At first, he went to Celadon City. He hoped that the larger city would prove to be a more interesting place for him than the sleepy streets of Lavender Town. However, he soon grew tired of what was once Kanto's largest city and he moved on to Fuchsia City. Unfortunately, he soon grew tired of that city as well. At that point, he made his decision to join the stream of travelers headed for Vermillion City, in hopes that he could obtain a visa to leave the Kanto region once and for all.

So that's everything that happened leading up to that Sunday morning on the airfield runway. Well, in a nutshell at least. So now that we have that out of the way, let's return to the real story.

* * *

"May, you've got to try and understand." Ash tried to explain. "If you stay here, nine in ten chances are we both end up dead before this war is over. It's in your best interest to trust me now and get on that plane." He said, gesturing to the silver plane sitting on the runway.

"Why?" The young brunette questioned. "Why should I go and leave you behind? You said yourself if we stay here we're likely to die before the war ends. I'm not leaving you here to die while I go seek safety. I'm not getting on that plane unless you get on with me."

"I wish I could May, but you know as well as I that only two of us can leave on that plane." The raven haired former trainer responded.

Then, for the first time in the conversation, it was Gavin who spoke up. "Then you two go." He said. "I'll stay here."

It was Ash that responded to his cousin. "You're not doing that."

"Why not?" Gavin questioned. "You deserve to go just as much, if not more, than I do. Besides, I wouldn't want to have to split you two up."

"No." Ash replied bluntly. "I'm the one that's staying. This is where I belong. At least for now it is."

"Well if you're not leaving, then I'm staying here too." May interrupted. "I don't care if it means we both end up dead. I'd rather die with you than have to live without you, knowing what could have been."

"May," Ash began, letting out a soft sigh. "You've got to go. If you stay, you'll regret it. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, maybe not even the day after that, but soon and for the rest of your life you will regret staying here in Vermillion City."

The lovers, and Gavin, continued to argue for some time after that, but it's not worthy going into the details. All you need to know is that, in the end, Ash succeeded in persuading May to get on the plane without him.

Ash stood on the foggy runway and watched as the plane's propellers started spinning faster and faster. The plane began to move forward, slowly at first, then gaining speed until it finally rose off the ground. He continued to watch as the plane rose higher and higher into the air, and only once he was no longer able to see the silver bird did he turn to leave.

May sat in her seat on the plane and her eyes began to water. The emotional toll was just too much for her.

Gavin, noticing how clearly upset the brunette was, attempted to cheer her up. "Don't worry." He said cheerily. "You and Ash will be back together someday." He lowered his voice to the point that it could no longer be heard before he added his last few words. "I hope so."

* * *

**Well, there you have it, the first chapter of my new story. Don't forget to leave a review letting me know what you think, and make sure to come back for the next chapter of **_**Love & Malice**_**.**


	2. Sanguine Sky

**Chapter 2: Sanguine Sky**

** I'm sure many of you reading this would agree that the beginning to this story was at least a little bit confusing. It was meant to be. Don't worry though, all your questions will be answered by the end of this story, starting with this chapter. Hopefully this chapter will provide you with some answers or at the very least give you a better idea of just what's going on. Anyways, I hope you'll enjoy chapter 2 of **_**Love and Malice**_**.**

** Disclaimer: Dr. Phil E. Sophical does not own Pokémon. Pokémon is the property of Nintendo. All original characters in this chapter are the property of Dr. Phil E. Sophical and are purely fictional. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is purely coincidental.**

* * *

War. What is it good for?

If you were to ask everyone you know, you would see some interesting responses. Chances are that most people you ask would agree that war isn't good for all that much. Some might even say it's good for absolutely nothing. Very few people alive today would say they think war is a good thing. You are far more likely to get response along the lines of "War isn't the answer." or "Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind." It's simple human nature. We support whatever action ensures we live another day on this big rock, and in most cases, that action is anything but war.

Of course, some people must approve of war, and those that do must be very influential people. How else do you explain all the wars that have been fought throughout humanity's years on Earth? Back when man only existed in nomadic tribes, the leaders of one clan or another were successful in rallying their people against another's. When the nomads finally settled into the land, was it not Caesaris that lead his people in conquest of those that surrounded them, creating the most prestigious of empires in that era? Surely the people of what was then the newly formed region of Hoenn were quick to exalt the cause of General Napoleon. Even when Captain Arthur Nemo called out his message of peace, war ensued as riots sprang up across the map wherever people cared to disagree. Despite what many men express as a dislike of war, it seems that mankind is unable to resist the urge to rally behind their cause, or the cause of another, in the most violent of manner.

That, my friends, is how this world war came about.

You see, it all started with one man. He was just one ordinary man. He lacked great wealth. He didn't have fame. He was, to put it quite simply, a rather unremarkable man, and yet he was able to move people to support his cause. When he spoke, the world listened. What he ordered, people followed. The droves would hear each and every command that escaped the lips of the man they exalted as their leader. Cries of "long live peace" were soon replaced with shouts of "Long live Alexander!"

Okay, not quite so literally. Not every man was quite so willing to put themselves behind the cause and counsel of Michael Alexander IV. As a matter of fact, most men weren't, but that made no difference. Those that did choose to follow him were greatly devoted to his cause. They were fully prepared to do his bidding. If he had told them to hurl themselves off of the highest cliff, they would have. If he had instructed them to set fire to the sea, they would have found a way to do so. Some were even so devoted to Alexander that, had he given them the word, they would have killed their own families in cold blood.

Now, just who was this man that people would be so willing to follow in his footsteps? By profession, he was a political theorist, but few people knew him by his occupation. To some, he was a visionary. To others, he was nothing more than a fool and a bigot. Some people claimed that he was bigger than all of religion, a cry which Michael Alexander IV personally backed, having once said "Religion will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue with that; I'm right and I will be proved right. I'm more popular than God now; I don't know which will go first – me or religion, though my thoughts lean to the latter." Other people went as low as calling him the reincarnation of Satan.

In all the disagreement, one thing was sure. People simply didn't know how to feel. Perhaps he really was on to something, or perhaps he was simply a man with delusions of grandeur. The facts can't say one way or the other. Only beliefs can do that.

Of course, for so many people to follow him, and for a greater number to hate him, he had to have some cause he supported. No man is made remarkable without a cause. Alexander was no exception. He put forth a cause so promising that the weak and simple minded couldn't help but rally behind it.

Just what was that cause? Well, in reality, it wasn't his cause. When Alexander rose to power, he simply renewed an idea that had been around for decades, granted it had been a dead cause through all those years. He revived a doctrine that was first put forth by a controversial philosopher by the name of Sigmund Lennon. Lennon had been dead for several years when Alexander rose, but his work was not unheard of. Many of his workings were still taught in prestigious universities. One piece in particular served as a great point of interest for scholars. It was a paper first published under the title of _The Lennon Thesis of Utopianism_, and it went something like this.

* * *

_ In my lifetime, I have succeeded in making it to the forefront of my field. I studied for ten years at Oxland University in Mauville City, among the most prestigious pupils in my study, and received recognition for academic merit in that field from highly renowned professors. I held a seat in the Sootopolis City Board of Commerce for three two-year terms, where I was able to apply my practices, and met with great suspect. Upon choosing not to run for re-election to the Board, I took an offer from the federal government to fill an empty office in the Inter-regional Relations Committee (IRRC). I have been a devoted member of the committee ever since, and as a result I have become well renowned for my merit as a politician. Of course I have not left my philosophy practices behind. My work has been printed on a weekly basis in various publications, both domestic and Interregional, including Traveler's Interregional Bulletin, The Indigo Gazette, and The LaRousse Times. _

_ Now, back when I was a student at the university, I met many interesting people, and those people had a lasting effect on my career. Had I not been able to converse with such distinguished colleagues, I fear that many of my works may not have come to light._

_ Of course, one man stands out above the rest. In respect to him, I shall not mention names, but I will say that he greatly changed my perspective._

_ You see, every morning he was at the university, this colleague of mine observed a very specific ritual. At precisely 8:05 every morning he would take his seat in the cafeteria at the table furthest from the door in the seat closest to the back wall of the room, with him he always carried a mug full of black coffee and the daily edition of The Mauville Herald. Once he had taken his seat, he would begin his daily gripe about the political, economic, or ethical state of our world. Once he finished his rant he would open the paper and add some remark about how, even though we were faced with such grave problems, the government had yet to succeed in any action to remedy the situation. Then he would page through his paper, reading the headlines and passively remarking, and never bothering to actually read the article. Once he reached the last page, he would stand up and walk off to tend to his studies, always making sure to leave the paper open to the obituaries. He completed that exact routine every morning without fail. I swear as long as the world continues to turn, that man will be unhappy about it._

_ Now, usually, this didn't affect me, but on one particular day, the date of which I can't quite remember, his morning rant brought me to an epiphany._

_ As I always tried to, I met my colleague in the cafeteria that morning promptly at 8:05. We sat down, and, as expected, he began his routine rant. On that particular morning, he chose to argue on our world economy._

"_Between what the rich take in taxes and the poor take in charity," he protested, "my money goes just about everywhere it can except for the pocket in my own set of pants." He then went on to add "And congress still hasn't passed that bill. How do they ever expect us to be able to survive in an economy such as this if they don't pass that legislation?"_

_ He went on with his routine. His exploration of the paper was rather unimportant to me, so it seemed. Finally he reached the obituaries. One in particular was notable that day: Captain Arthur Nemo had passed away the night before._

_ To this information my colleague remarked "There goes the world's last chance at salvation."_

_ I was well aware of my colleague's support of Nemo. In the earlier years, even though he was at quite a young age, my colleague was a dedicated supporter of the peace movement. It was his well-expressed belief that in order to bring about a more perfect union, it would first be necessary to banish violence from our world entirely. If that were achieved, he would claim, then perhaps we could finally fix everything wrong with the world._

_ Now as time wore on, the two of us went our separate ways. For a while we did all we could to keep in touch. However, as life went on, we conversed less and less, until we reached the point where any contact between the two of us was all but unheard of. I'll tell you honestly that I'm not even entirely sure where my colleague ended up. Perhaps he still devotes his life to the peace movement. Maybe he continues his morning ritual of complaints to this day. Of course I can't even say with certainty that he is still alive today, but that is beside the point._

_ You see, I realize he wasn't unlike other men, what with his routine of complaining. He was just more vocal about it than most other men dared be. _

_ I spent the next many years looking for the answer. I spent that time looking for the ideal, for the society in which men would have no complaints about it. In short, I was searching for a way to bring the concept of utopia to be a reality._

_ Now, for the first years, my efforts proved to be fruitless. The answer eluded me because I found myself unable to find the root of the problems, but I didn't let that discourage me. I continued my work, and finally stumbled upon what I believe to be the answer._

_ Let me just preface this by saying that __my role in society, as is any artist's or poet's role, is to try and express what we all feel. Not to tell people how to feel. Not as a preacher, not as a leader, but as a reflection of us all. The conclusions I have drawn are simply those which have resulted from my own personal research and experience._

_ At the root of all our problems, it would seem is a single concept: ethics. The way our government runs is completely ineffective due to a conflict of ethics between different representatives, and between representatives and those they voice for. The resulting gridlock ensures that any progress made in any capacity is painstakingly slow, and in most cases, is an ineffective compromise as opposed to a true solution. That's the reason why simple problems quickly become tremendous difficulties._

_ Now, it is unreasonable to say that in order to reach a utopian state, we must simply all decide to agree on things. To truly achieve such a goal we must look beyond the broad scope and concentrate on unifying the underlying concept._

_ That led to another interesting question. What determines our ethics? Surely there must be some distinct set of factors, as describing such a process as random would be a ludicrous statement at the least._

_ Now, trying to answer that particular question took a while more. Many long hours were spent pouring over research documents and examining data-sheets. After many days and nights of devoted work, I was able to pinpoint what I had searched so long for._

_ Studies show a direct correlation between various ethical beliefs and the religion a person practices. In most, but not all cases, persons who practiced any one given religion were more likely to have similar ethics as other who practiced the same religion as opposed to those who practiced a different religion._

_ What does that mean for us?_

_ Let me put it this way. It took many years for women to achieve a state of equality with men. That was the first main advanced towards total equality. After many long fought battles following that, we were able to achieve a state of equality for minorities, which was our second advanced towards total equality. After that, we spent the years toiling away until we were more or less able to remove all traces of religious persecution from our world. That leaves us with just one more step along the road to total equality: ethical unity._

_ Now, it seems there are two ways to come about this. The first method is to force conformity through religious conversion to a new world standard belief. The second would be to eliminate diversity through extermination of those who do not meet the defined standard for the new utopia._

_ As one may guess, both of these options are highly impractical. Furthermore, even if it were possible to succeed in either of the aforementioned options, our world would face serious repercussions that would gravely affect the stability of the new utopian society._

_ Let's start by examining the possibility of mass conversion. I would suspect that a vast majority of people would be against the notion of willingly converting their religious beliefs, and with good reason._

_ You see, a man's religious beliefs often reflect his the way he was raised, specifically his parentage. At such a young age, a vast majority of men simply adopt whatever religion their parent's follow, until they are old enough to make a conscious decision themselves._

_ Now that's not to say that people don't change. It is not unheard of for young adults to, once independent of their parents, to experience a change in beliefs. Often this is the result of new real-world experience that may cause them to either doubt the religion they were taught, or realize they have been isolated from a doctrine that better suits their thoughts and morals. However, more often than not, men retain the religion they were raised with. As a matter of fact, a vast majority of conversions are interdenominational, within a single primary religion, as opposed to full religious conversion._

_ I find it needless to say that most men are firmly cemented in their religious practices. Now imagine what it would mean if they were forced to change those beliefs._

_ The application of such methods would result in serious cracks in the new society. The likelihood of revolt would greatly increase, and it would not be unreasonable to expect that the converted would seek retribution for their oppressors. I would chance a guess that, if we were to apply such a method as I have described, we would see the fall of our utopia within a few short years, if not months._

_ Of course, we still have a second option: the complete extermination of those who do not meet what is defined as the standard for the new utopia. Although, this option isn't much greater. Why? Just think about it._

_ In order to achieve that task we would have to result to structured execution on a massive scale. The simple proposal of this method is a one way ticket to mass-genocide, infanticide, and a tremendous holocaust. Following this plan of action would lead to the murder of millions. What for? Simply because they don't share the religion with those who rise to power in utopia. Potential problematics would become the target of the greatest decimation in all of recorded human history._

_ Now, as inhumane as it may seem, this course is decisively the better of the two. While it may not seem that way in the short term, it all pans out in the long run. How? You may ask. Think about it like this._

_ Both plans involve two main groups. The first is the new majority, which defines the new world's standard. The secondary group is the rest of the population, those who don't fit the new mold. _

_ Now, in the first plan, the secondary is suppressed in such a way as to make them to fit in with the standard of the new world. Of course, it is no secret that, in many cases, oppression ends with revolution. It is because of that, that the first plan is less than optimal. Were we able to succeed in a mass religious conversion, we would be creating a new society that is fragile at best._

_ On the other hand, the second plan of action removes the second group from the equation entirely. That minimizes any chance of revolt, and provides for an overall more stable society. (That is, until the inevitable happens and some group of men finds a way to make themselves more elite members of society, at the expense of those below them. Although, in a utopian society we may find that such the ordinary cycle of society is no longer applicable.)_

_ Ironically, the key to the solution is the same as the root of the problem: ethics. Yes, it all comes full circle so it seems. The key to making utopia a reality lies in a single question. Is the product worth the price?_

_ Unfortunately, the answer to such a question has yet eluded me. There is no practical solution to the presented problem that is not completely subjective in part or in whole. It all comes back to the morals of man, so one could say that the point is moot._

_ Is securing serenity and perfection for the unborn millions worth fire and brimstone for those who live in today? That is the question that we must leave to the ages._

* * *

These were the words that Alexander drew upon. He spent uncounted years analyzing them, studying them, interpreting them, and observing how he could apply them to the world in which he lived.

Unfortunately, he chose to disregard the warnings Lennon described. He formulated his plan of action. He garnered support from close friends and distant family. Finally, when he felt he had sufficient backing, he set the ball rolling.

As his ignorance of Lennon's precaution displays, Alexander was not the brightest of men, but he was by no means dull either. He knew that if could ever hope to succeed in achieving his goals of creating utopia, he would need far more support than that provided by his existing support platform. In hopes of remedying the situation, he made his decision to seek political office.

He knew his success would not be built overnight, so he decided to start small. He began by running for mayor in his hometown of Icirrus City. He made sure to build his campaign around everything he knew the people wanted. He didn't care much if he did well in the position of mayor after all; he was just using it as a stepping stone to reach higher offices.

He promised everything good he could think of: better city maintenance, increased revenue, lower taxes and fees, fewer restrictions on recreational activities. With all the promises he made, it was hard for any voter to say know. The prospect of such great improvement to their quality of life was too great of an opportunity to simply pass up. He won the office in a landslide.

Now that he had secured his position in office, he prepared for the next part of his plan. He knew he had to get his name in good standing with the public, politically. He spent his term working his fingers to the bone in order to fulfill all the promises he had made to the citizens.

Eventually the time came that his term reached its end. He left office on good terms with the city's residents. Almost all of them could see some sort of improvement since he had taken office. At the very least, the city was in worse of a state than when he had taken up his position.

Having left local-scale politics behind, Alexander began rallying for the next step in his political career: regional government.

However, he was unable to return to action immediately. You see, the election system was designed in such a way that voting for each of the three scales of government, local regional, and federal occurred in different years. In consequence, Alexander was forced to wait through a gap year before he could begin his pursuit of regional election.

Of course, he didn't spend that year idly. Instead, he spent it lobbying for his upcoming campaign. He already had Icirrus City's confirmed support, but he knew that that would not be enough to obtain an office in the regional government. He spent his days traveling from city to city attempting to gain further support for his vie for office.

Finally the time came. Alexander officially announced that he would be running for regional office. While his campaign had been going for a year already, he had continued to withhold what office he would be seeking. However, when the time to announce it came, he declared that his name would be on the ballot for the senate seat belonging to Unova's third political district, the heart of which was Icirrus City.

Contrary to what the people were expecting, officially announcing his campaign left his campaign completely unchanged. He simply continued working at his leisurely pace; promoting the ideas he thought would win him the most votes: lower taxes, a stronger welfare program for low-income and disabled families, less government spending, and stronger positive relations with the other regions.

After several months on the campaign trail, Election Day rolled around. That election saw the greatest voter turnout in over fifty years. When the ballots had been cast and the polls were closed, work began on the tally.

Not surprisingly, Alexander won the support of Icirrus City almost unanimously. Only three percent of the city's population voted against his favor. The rest of the district however, was less decisive. Most of the other poll locations saw a more balanced set of results, and in the end, Alexander claimed his office by a very narrow margin.

As was the case when he held the office of mayor, Alexander spent his term as a Unova senate member doing everything he could to fulfill the promises he had made in his campaign. Of course, the regional scale was much harder to work with than the local scale, so it was only natural that he, along with many who voted for him, to believe that he would be able to achieve as much as he had promised. That didn't discourage him though. He continued to work for what he felt was the people's best interest. He knew he had to leave the senate with his name in good standing if he were ever to be able to accomplish the final portion of his political rise: election to the federal system.

The end of the senate term finally came. When asked if he would run for reelection, Alexander replied that he would not be putting his name on the regional ballot for the coming term. Instead, he announced that he would be running for federal office in the next election.

Unlike when he was preparing to run for senate, Alexander did not spend his gap year working on his own campaign. Instead, he spent it assisting the campaign of a young man named Charles Adams, who was running for the office of Governor General in Unova, the highest regional government office.

Many people were shocked to find that Alexander was backing Adams. Up until that point, the two politicians had never interacted. At least, not in the public eye they hadn't.

What people didn't know was that Alexander had secretly coerced Adams into backing his cause, should he be elected to federal office. As a matter of fact Alexander had already selected members for his cabinet if he were to be elected, and he made sure each was on the ballot as a candidate for Federal Delegate for their respective political district.

Regional Election Day came and went. The votes were cast and the world in turn began preparation for federal elections. A few days later, the regional results were released, and Charles Adams had indeed been elected as Governor General.

With one more victory under his belt, Michael Alexander IV prepared for the home stretch: getting himself and those he was in league with elected.

Since it was the final step in his political journey, Alexander knew it was not the time to hold back. He promised more than he had ever promised before. If he were to be elected, he promised, he would make dreams come true. He would make utopia a reality. Televisions and radios were buzzing with his message.

"_A dream you dream alone is just a dream, but a dream you dream together is reality. Dare to dream. Vote Alexander for Chairman of the Board of Executives."_

He traveled the world, shaking hands, kissing babies, and making speeches.

"_Imagine a world of no problems. A world of no possessions. No need for greed or hunger. A brotherhood of man. Imagine there's no regions. It isn't hard to do. Nothing to kill or die for, and no struggles too. A world with no hell below us, and above us only sky. You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. Join us, and the word will finally live as one._"

Alexander also spent his time working on the campaign of his prospective cabinet. However, he made sure that the public never found out that they were in cahoots. It very well may have ruined his plan if they had.

Election Day came and went just as expected. The whole world was watching and waiting for the results. Counting the votes was quick work, and that very night it was announced that the new Chairman of the Board of Executives was Michael Alexander IV by a thirty seven percent margin.

I tell you, there isn't a man who was alive in that day that will ever forget Michael Alexander IV's acceptance speech. "This dream, **will** last forever. This dream will **never** die. We will rise to meet the challenge. We will leap into this fight head on, and we **will** succeed." Those were his words, and surely I tell you, they moved a nation.

In addition, thirteen of the fifteen delegates in league with Alexander were also elected to the board, leaving just six seats that weren't filled by Alexandrians (as they would soon be called).

Having the federal government well under his control, with two thirds of the board in his favor, Michael Alexander IV was quick to put his final plan into action. They didn't know it then, but the sixty eight and a half percent of voters who voted for Alexander would soon regret it dearly.

* * *

It was six months after the election when it all began. Michael Alexander's master plan was finally ready to be put into action.

Every television and radio station in the union was broadcasting that afternoon, and almost all the people were watching. Those in their homes stopped working and took a seat. Those on the road were quick to find the nearest Pokémon center where they could tune in. On that fateful day, the whole world came to an utter standstill to hear the words of one man.

Earlier that same day, Alexander announced that he would be making a public appearance in Goldenrod City in order to address a most dire issue that had arisen. Each and every person with a television set or radio was urged to stop and listen, and most all of them did.

Goldenrod City's Town Hall was filled to the brim. They were all packed in there to the back wall. Everyone wanted to be able to witness the event firsthand.

Alexander took his spot at the wooden podium in the front of the hall and cleared his throat. In a strong, calm voice, he began his address.

"As you may or may not know, the board has spent the past forty-eight hours in a heated session, and I'm afraid the offspring of that session is less than optimal. A most unprecedented series of events have occurred. While I wish it were not so, under the nineteenth clause of the third article of our constitution, I am, when outweighed by a two thirds majority, unable to veto the decision of the board delegates. It is thus, that I speak to you today of Unova's secession from the union."

A collective gasp spread through the hall. Not once in the history of the union had a region resorted to secession. For such drastic actions to happen out of the blue was all but unheard of.

Making an effort to calm the crowd, the chairman continued.

"Now, I assure you a full investigation of the events is underway. The federal intelligence agency has sufficient reason to believe that the Governor General of Unova, a mister Charles Adams, may be plotting against the union. In addition, we are making examinations of the thirteen board delegates who voted in favor of the impromptu action, of whom only three are current citizens of Unova. It is due to this fact that we believe the plot headed by Mister Charles Adams may reach beyond the regional boundaries. We do not yet believe this to be an act of terrorism, but we do suspect that political catastrophe is imminent. In consequence, until further notice, all government functions are being put on hiatus. Thank you."

Alexander proceeded to leave the podium. After which, the cameras stopped rolling, and people started filing out of the room. With the government locked down and the threat of war looming in the air, no one knew quite what to do.

As far as the government blackout went, feelings were mostly mixed. On the bright side, since the government was in a state of inactivity, those that were eligible wouldn't need to be pay taxes, but that also meant that the welfare program was at a stand-still. The Battle Frontier, being a privately owned operation, would remain open, but the Pokémon League and contests, which were both government funded programs, would be in a state of blackout as well. All in all, the benefits didn't outweigh the costs, nor vice versa.

Most people were happy to find that the government was at least taking action in light of the events. Of course, most people didn't know what was really going on.

* * *

Everyone that supported Unova's secession was in league with Alexander. He was the mastermind of it all. Quite honestly, it was an ingenious plan. He knew the how the system worked. He knew how to work around it. He played it like a violin.

Alexander knew that in order for his plan to work, he would need to create massive chaos. In order to do that, he needed a pawn. That's why he backed Adams. He knew he could turn around and use him for his own personal agenda.

He convinced Adams, the Governor General, to appeal to the Board of Executives for Unova's secession. Once the appeal was made, it would be up to the board to pass a ruling. That's where the two-thirds majority came in.

Alexander knew that his power was limited. So long as at least two thirds of the board was in agreement on any given issue, the chairman was powerless to veto it. That's why he worked so hard to get such a large portion of the cabinet that was on his side. They could do his dirty work for him, and he could feign innocence because he was constitutionally powerless to stop them.

That was the brilliance in his plan. He achieved his goals, but all the blame went to his scapegoat colleagues. Meanwhile, he was exalted as the hero. He planned to continue using the façade, saying that his own actions were those of Adams, and he was unable to put a stop to it. To him, Adams was nothing more than a pawn, a way to do what he needed to without being held responsible. It was the perfect plan.

Well, it _would_ have been perfect, but Murphy's Law makes sure that doesn't happen. Anything that can go wrong will, and it will happen at the least opportune time. If you make sure everything can't go wrong, it will anyways. If there are multiple ways in which something can go wrong, the one that will do the most damage will be the one to happen.

That's what happened, and that's what started the war.

* * *

It was a few months, almost a two years, after Alexander made his address to the people. The government was still locked-down, and Unova was still holding tight to its new found sovereignty. The federal government had yet to take action, and Alexander claimed that their hands were tied by the constitution. Meanwhile, he was exercising his own personal agenda, starting in Unova, through Charles Adams.

Unfortunately, that's when the plan fell apart. Lead by a traitorous Alexandrian among themselves, the board sought to impeach Alexander. When put under the pressure of their peers, all but one member of the board voted in favor of the trial. In addition, they gathered support from the Governor Generals of whom all but Charles Adams agreed to have Alexander tried.

It was so that a month later, Michael Alexander IV was brought before the judges of the high court to make his case. Now, by the constitution, he was entitled to an attorney for his defense, but the egotistical tyrant refused and chose to represent himself.

He tried to make his case in the same manner he had before: propaganda. He continued to use Adams and the board as scapegoats, and claimed that he was powerless to stop them, as dictated by an ineffective doctrine for governing the people. Unfortunately, that was a case that few people were still willing to believe, and the judges least of all.

Then there was the prosecution's case. By some unknown means, they were able to produce record of phone calls, emails, and various other methods of communication that clearly exhibited Alexander's method of coercing his scapegoats into following his plans.

Faced with so much cold, hard, evidence, Alexander pleaded guilty to his supposed crimes. However, he didn't stick around long enough for anything to be done. He resigned from office the day of his sentencing and readily fled, not to be seen again for quite some time.

Now, with Alexander no longer in office, a replacement for the position was very much necessary. According to the constitution laid forth by the forefathers, in such a turn of events, the replacement chairman was to be selected from any Governor Generals currently holding office that wished to fill the position. Of these there were two. In order to select one of the two, an informal election was hosted. The results were tallied, and it was deemed that the Governor General of Kanto, Terrence Mann, would fill the chairman seat.

Of course, since no region had ever seceded, the whole process came as somewhat of a shock. Up until that time, there were only two cases where the chairman had to be replaced, and both were as a result of assassination. Alexander was the first to be impeached, which made Mann the first to step into office under such conditions.

It would be reasonable to expect that Mann, upon taking office, would begin doing everything in his power to reduce controversy and get the government functioning properly again. That wasn't the case. As a matter of fact, Mann's very first action upon taking office was just as controversial as Unova's secession.

You see, according to the constitution, any member of the federal government proven to be subject of corruption could be forced to resign by petition. Now it's rather needless to say that the thirteen Alexandrians in the board of executives were indeed proven to have been subject of corruption. As a result, most of the world was expecting Mann to petition for their removal. However, he had a different perspective.

According to Mann, it was the influence of Alexander that caused the corruption that served as the subject of the controversy. In no way was it right to hold that against the delegates. Despite their actions in helping Alexander, Mann still supported the delegates and Charles Adams too. Within a few days of filling office, he announced that he would not file petition for their removal, nor would he notarize any petition started in order to call for it.

That was his first mistake.

Why? There are two reasons.

The first? After what had happened, the names of the delegates and Adams were not in particularly good standing with the public. The fact that Terrence Mann was still willing to support such publicly disliked names greatly influenced people's opinion of him.

Of course, the second reason is probably more important. Leaving the Alexandrians on the board and as Governor General meant that Michael Alexander IV still had influence in the government. Surely they did not expressly support him any longer, seeing as they had called for his impeachment, but they still stood for values that would benefit his plan.

Now, that brings about a better question. What was his plan?

* * *

Alexander's basic plan involved three distinct steps: incarceration, emancipation, and termination. Through Charles Adams, he was able to begin the first part of his master plan without taking blame. However, when he was impeached the first step was still far from complete.

You see, the first step of Alexander's plan called for the imprisonment of millions of people, more specifically, those who didn't believe in what he deemed as "utopia's religion". Needless to say, the task was not an easy one, especially because Alexander's utopian standard was made to reflect his own personal beliefs, not those of the majority. In consequence, those that were part of the majority were actually part of the target.

Now, to understand this fact, you need to know something about religion in the world at that time. In those days, you could divide religions into five main categories: Arceism, Mewslam, Anthropocentrism, Atheism, and Other.

Arceism was the religion Michael Alexander IV practiced, as well as that which he chose as the standard for the new utopian world. Along with Alexander, roughly sixteen percent of the world population practiced Arceism.

Of course it would useful to know: what exactly is Arceism?

The religion of Arceism is a polytheistic one, venerating the so-called Legendary Pokémon above all others as deities, not merely powerful Pokémon. Now, there are many different denomination of Arceism, the most popular of which is Traditional Arceism, but they all share one thing in common. All branches of Arceism believe in the Pantheon, a sort of house of the gods in which each deity is the ruler of a given aspect of the world, with Arceus serving as the supreme deity and creator.

Now, in Traditional Arceism, the Pantheon is divided into two parts: The Major Arcana and The Minor Arcana.

The Major Arcana is viewed as the higher of the two divisions, and contains thirteen of the deities. Those deities which reside in the Major Arcana are described to control the major aspects of our world, hence the name _Major_ Arcana. For example, celebi is the embodiment of change. Mew represents fertility. Palkia and Dialga are the embodiments of space and time respectively. Arceus, being the chief of the deities, is the embodiment of life itself.

Then there's the Minor Arcana, which contains the remaining legendary Pokémon. Those placed in the Minor Arcana are said to control the finer details of our world. Articuno is the deity of winter. Lugia is said to be the embodiment of destiny. Victini is said to be the personification of luck. In such a manner, each of the remaining legendary Pokémon is said to represent some aspect of life or the world.

Now, according to the beliefs of Traditional Arceists, Arceus created both the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana. On the other hand, Reform Arceists believe that Arceus created the Major Arcana. In turn, the major created the minor. However, scientific evidence derived from fossils would suggest that the latter system of beliefs is less than likely to be factual. Regardless though, scores of people still practice the religion.

Since Alexander was an Arceist-and he chose his religion to be the only acceptable one- it would make since that those people who practiced other religions would be considered his enemies, because they did not share his beliefs. What then _did_ they believe?

As far as actual religions go, the most popular was Anthropocentrism. The basic belief of all anthropocentric churches was that men, not Pokémon, were of god status. Some churches actually apotheosized historical humans. Other stuck to worshipping the spirit in the sky, so to speak. Very few actually share similarities beyond such basics, but regardless they are often discussed as being one branch of religion.

Then there's the other poke-centric religion: Mewslam. Unlike Arceism, where Mew is the viewed as the deity of fertility, in Mewslam Mew is viewed as the one and only deity. According to Mewslamic belief, Mew is the Christ from which all life descended. On the other end of the spectrum is Mewtwo which, created by humans, is the embodiment of sin and serves as the anti-christ. While it is possible to go into further detail, that information really isn't necessary to our cases.

The final of the major religious groups is Atheism, which is further subdivided into secularity, nihilism, and unaffiliation. All of these share one common characteristic. They deny or disbelieve the presence of a supreme deity. Secularists believe that though a supreme being may exist, it is one that lies beyond the boundaries of human comprehension. Nihilists prefer to think that there is no divine being. Most unaffiliated people can't be labeled either way. It's possible that they do believe in a god or gods, but prefer not to profess it, or they may believe otherwise. It's hard to know.

Of course, those aren't the only religions. Many cults and traditional religions dating as far back as the nomadic tribes still existed at the time. However, they were hardly prevalent and are not worth going into in greater depth.

Anyways, Alexander's second step was to weed out those who were willing to meet demands. When he began designing his plan, he determined that all interned citizens would be given a set period of time to make their choice. They could either convert to the utopian standard, and be freed, or refuse to convert.

What happened to those who refused? That's step three.

Those who refused to convert to the new world's standard of religion would be systematically killed in a massive genocide. All who were unwilling to meet the demands they were presented with would be removed from the world, so as to prevent potential problems.

Of course, a plan of that nature would be met with natural resistance. Everyone knew it would happen eventually. The only question they had was who would be responsible for that action.

Not so surprisingly, it ended up being Terrence Mann. It didn't take much effort to convince the leaders of the remaining regions to take action against Alexander and his followers. The result of that agreement was a pact that led to the formation of a resistance group that would come to be known as the Allies.

That's when the world was officially declared to be in a state of war.

* * *

** Wow. That's definitely the longest chapter I've ever written, and probably one of the least exciting one's too…**

** Don't worry though. Now that a majority of the plot development and backstory is complete, we can start getting into the real action next chapter. Trust me; this story only has room to go up from here. I promise.**

** Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the new chapter, and I hope you'll come back to read the next one.**

** So until then, read, review, and keep on rocking and rolling…**

** -Phil**


	3. As Life Goes By

**Chapter 3: As Life Goes By**

** So it seems the last chapter was met with some mixed reactions, which I was sort of expecting. To all of you who like it, great. I'm glad. To those of you who don't, well, c'est la vie as the French would say. I'm a writer. It's not my job to please the reader and bend to their every whim. I just do what I want, and I'm going to keep doing it that way. Sorry about it.**

** Don't worry though, I won't be writing another chapter like that last one for a long, long, time. That was a one-time plot development deal. All that gobbledygook had to go in there, and I decided it would be best to get it over with as quickly as possible, like pulling off a band aid.**

** On the bright side, all of that's behind us now, so we can finally get into a more entertaining part of the story. We'll finish meeting our main characters, and start to get some action going… **

** Well, I've stalled long enough. Enjoy the new chapter.**

**Disclaimer:**

**Pokémon and all of its characters are the property of Nintendo.**

**Gavin is the property of PichuAuraGuardian18**

**All other characters are the property of Dr. Phil E. Sophical**

* * *

Ash watched as the plane taxied down the runway. He continued to watch as it slowly began to lift off the ground and rise higher and higher into the air. He continued to stand on the runway watching until he could no longer see the plane. That's when he turned to leave.

He began his trek to the other side of town, where the Alley Meowth stood. It was still fairly early in the morning, and it seemed that Vermillion City and all its citizens were just starting to wake up. Second story windows were flung up as homeowners leant out their windows to take in the wonderful July air. Some citizens were already walking out their front doors to make the commute to work. Paperboys were just beginning their morning routes, and rode by on bikes, tossing the daily news onto doorsteps. On one corner, stood a man playing a bright and shiny tenor saxophone, with his case on the ground to collect tips. All in all, it made for quite a joyful atmosphere.

And yet, Ash wasn't happy. Quite the opposite actually. He was as depressed as a rich man who had lost his full worth. As sad as a child who had just dropped their ice cream cone. As melancholy as a soccer mom who hadn't had her morning coffee. As… well you get the point.

He trudged through town with his hands in his pockets, and his head ducked low. Despite the fact that it was almost eighty degrees in July, he walked in such a way that wouldn't look out of place in the cold November rain of a 1930's black and white detective movie.

Eventually, he came to the place he was looking for. He pushed open the black wood door, and strode across the room, completely ignoring everything in between the door and the bar. He passed right by the round wood tables with their red chrome and vinyl chairs. He walked straight past the black baby grand that sat on the slightly elevated stage off to the opposite side of the room. He strode past the patrons sitting in scattered seats, drinking what they chose and listening to the music of the piano. (The bar was always full, as the Alley Meowth never closed at nights.)He simply marched straight up to the wooden bar, and the red vinyl stools lining it.

"Open up the bar John." He exclaimed, as he took a seat. "I need a drink." He paused for a moment. "I need something…"

The blonde man behind the bar was quick to comply. He turned around and pulled out a glass, along with several bottles. He opened a bottle and started mixing his boss a drink.

That's when Billy, the piano man, walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder.

Startled, Ash turned around. "Aren't you supposed to be playing?" The raven haired man asked, gesturing to the crowd that now sat sitting awkwardly in silence. "I'm not paying you to stand at the bar." He added. "That's what John's for."

Billy was in his late twenties at the time. He stood at roughly six foot six, dwarfing his boss and most of the bars patrons. On top of his towering figure was a head full of short brown hair, which matched his brown eyes perfectly. Not that it mattered. His eyes were always covered by a pair of dark black sunglasses that he wore to complement the suit and tie he insisted on wearing to work every day, even though the Alley Meowth was a casual dress kind of place. I mean, it is a _bar_ after all…

The piano man reached into his suit pocket, and pulled out a beverage napkin with some scrawled ink writing on one side. He held it up to show Ash. "We still have her request." He said. "I know you told me never to play that song, but-" He was cut off.

By this time, John had finished mixing the drink, and Ash had taken it in his hand. "Play it Billy." He said, taking a small sip. "Play _As Life Goes By_." Once he finished speaking, he quickly downed his drink, turned to John, and gestured for him to refill it.

"If you say so." Billy replied. He walked back over to the stage, and sat down at his baby grand. His fingers trickled slowly over the keys as he recalled the tune.

* * *

Meanwhile, May and Gavin were in mid-flight. The airway commute from Vermillion City to the Sevii Islands is actually only an hour, but in light of the events that had just transpired, that hour felt like a dozen to May and Gavin.

At first, they sat in silence. Well, not total silence, but pretty darn near it. The only sounds that permeated the air of the plane cabin were the sounds of the propellers whirling, and May's hushed weeping.

Normally, May wouldn't have been crying into Gavin's shoulder, but recent events had taken their toll on the former coordinator. Everything had happened so quickly. So very quickly. Just days before, she had been traveling Kanto, without a worry about the war. She was just travelling the world as she so loved to do.

Then things changed.

She was in Lavender Town one day, visiting an old friend she had met during her journey. They had been walking through the small purple town, when their conversation took an interesting turn. That is, her friend brought up the war.

Now, since May had been travelling a lot recently, she hadn't been able to keep up with the news to well. Actually, that was the one downside she saw to frequent travel. Sure, they made newspapers like the _Traveler's Interregional Bulletin_, but May never found it to be worth it to pick up a copy. None of the news was ever so important that it couldn't wait until she returned home for a while.

Anyways, realizing she may soon become stranded in the Kanto region, May desperately made off for Vermillion City. She knew she had to catch a ferry back to home sweet Hoenn, as soon as possible, and before it was too late. Kanto was great and all, but she wasn't too keen on remaining there for an extended period of time. The region reminded her too much of _him_, and _he_ reminded her of anger, loathing, and even, though very few, some malicious thoughts. While it may seem ridiculous, it isn't all that farfetched. After all, they didn't exactly leave each other on good terms.

That's why May made such an effort to reach home. That's why she ended up in Vermillion City.

After a couple of days of non-stop travel, May made it to the port city. She made quick work of weaving through the maze of streets and avenues, until she was at the ferry docks. She ran up to the booth to purchase her ticket, panting like an arcanine that had just taken a beating from a blastoise, which definitely earned her an interesting look from the ticket man.

"I'd like…too…buy a…ticket…to…Huh…Hoenn." She gasped out in between breaths.

"Okay." The man in the booth replied. "If you could just show me your visa, we'll get you on your way."

"Vuh-Vuh-Visa?" May was able to stammer out as she struggled to catch he breath. "Wha-Wha…what visa?" May, being quite out of the loop as a result of her constant travelling, had no idea what the man meant.

"Well," The ticket salesman began. "As the world is currently in a state of war, the federal government has issued an ordinance stating that any travel in between regions can only be done on an officially issued government visa."

"But I don't have a visa." May stated.

"Well, I'm afraid we can't sell you a ticket if you don't have a visa." The clerk returned. "Although, if you would like to apply for a visa, you can get the papers at the city courthouse. Then you can get them approved and be on your way."

So that's how May got stuck in Vermillion City.

Once she got the news that she wouldn't be leaving anytime soon, she checked into a room at the local Pokémon Center. Word to the wise, the next time you check into a Pokémon center on the west side of Vermillion City, make sure you know just what kind of vacancy you're filling, or you may find yourself to be a permanent resident of…the Twilight Zone.

Okay, not really, but if you're stranded in the port city as a result of world war, you are going to be there for a while.

That's what happened to May. She checked in, climbed the stairs to the second floor, and searched the long line of doors for the one with the number six-thirteen placard on it. She found the appropriate door, stuck her key card in the slot, waited for the little green light to flash, and pushed open the door.

It was the same standard room that almost all Pokémon centers had. There were two sets of bunk beds sitting along either wall. A small wooden desk had been placed in one corner, and a coffee table, sofa, and two armchairs occupied the other.

May tossed her pack on one of the beds, before collapsing onto the bottom bunk of the other. Things had been getting continually worse for May over the past couple of days. It was bad enough that the war had been inhibiting her ability to travel as much as she would have liked. Now it had her stranded in the Kanto region, with almost no hope of getting home to Hoenn any time soon.

She realized she needed to obtain a visa some way or another, so that's what she focused on doing.

At first, she went to the courthouse like the ticket salesman had recommended. Unfortunately, when she first got there, the courthouse was closed. That led to three hours spent standing outside the regal looking building's large wooden double doors.

Finally, the courthouse opened its doors to the public for the day, and May was able to make her way inside. She was quickly able to locate the appropriate place to obtain her visa, and made her way over to the clerk sitting behind the large wooden desk.

"I'd like to apply for a visa." The young brunette declared.

The man behind the desk, your stereotypical grey-haired, crotchety old guy, working for the local government, looked up from the form he had been reading. "Okay." He replied, picking up a clipboard with the necessary form on it. He picked up a pen and scribbled some stuff on a piece of scratch paper to make sure it worked. He then got distracted doodling, and nearly forgot that May was there.

"Excuse me," She said. "But I'd like to apply sometime _today_ if you don't mind."

"Oh, yes." The man responded. He picked up a pair of wire rimmed glasses that were sitting on the desk, and carefully put them on. "Name?"

"May Maple."

"City of Origin?"

"What?"

"Hometown."

"Oh, Petalburg City."

"Date of birth?"

So May spent the next fifteen minutes answering questions about herself, her intentions in travelling, and any part of her past that may concern the authorities.

"Ma'am, have you ever been convicted of a felony?"

"No." May scoffed.

"Are you now, or have you ever been, on parole for some crime of a violent nature?"

"What kind of question is that?" The brunette exclaimed.

"Just answer the question." The man replied. It was obvious he wasn't too happy about doing his job.

"No." The former coordinator replied.

"Destination?"

"Hoenn."

"Reasons for travel?"

"I don't know." May replied. "To travel."

"Alright," The man proclaimed. "That's all we need. "We'll go ahead and submit this, and you should know within three weeks whether or not your visa has been approved."

"What!" May exclaimed. "You mean I don't even get the visa yet?"

"I'm afraid not ma'am." The government worker replied.

"Fine!" May shouted. She turned and stomped out of the courthouse.

Once she left the courthouse, May made her way back to the Pokémon center. She decided to stop at the front desk and ask if Nurse Joy knew of any other ways to obtain a visa. So that's what she did.

"Well," The nurse paused. "You could always check out the Alley Meowth. The owner usually has a visa or two up for sale…" She trailed off. "But be warned, it isn't an expressly legal way of obtaining one. It should be fine for a one time use, but I wouldn't recommend using it continuously. Traveling on a stolen or counterfeit visa is a felony after all…"

"Where is, and more importantly what is, the Alley Meowth?" The brunette traveler questioned.

"It's a bar up on the north side of town." The pink haired nurse responded. "If you leave the Pokémon center and head straight north, you should be able to find it pretty easily."

"A bar, you say?" May asked.

"Yes." Nurse Joy replied simply. "A piano bar."

Those three words brought back an onslaught of memories and emotions. That cold rainy night, all those years ago. The first night the young former coordinator spent in the canal city of Alto Mare. _Him_. And that song. The song a small part of her, deep down inside longed to hear…

But May couldn't allow herself to get lost in reminiscence. She had a job to do. She couldn't lose sight of that goal: get a visa and get out.

May thanked the nurse, and climbed the steps to the second floor of the Pokémon center. She walked down the hallway until she reached the door with the number six thirteen on it. She stuck the card in the slot, waited for the light, and made her way inside. She picked up her pack from where it lay on the bed, and unzipped one pocket. She pulled out a small wad of bills and coins. She stuck a few in her pocket and the rest back into the bag. May didn't exactly frequent bars during her travels, but that doesn't mean she would simply pass up some good music and a drink.

May left the pack on the bed as she walked out of the room. She made her way back downstairs, through the lobby, and out the front door. Recalling the directions Nurse Joy had given her, she turned north and proceeded to walk on to the Alley Meowth.

After about ten minutes of walking through the city streets, she found the place she was looking for. She made her way in through the big black doors, and into the bar.

Much like _he_ would do a few days later, she ignored everything in between as she strode across the room to the bar. She took a seat on one of the stools and called over the bar tender to order a drink.

John the bar tender was quick to fix her drink for her and set it down on the bar in front of her. May thanked him and paid for her beverage, making sure to throw in a little extra as a tip. Then she turned and asked the man. "Does he take requests?" She asked, gesturing to Billy, who was sitting behind his piano on stage.

"Sure does ma'am." The bar tender replied. "Just gotta write it on a napkin in and toss in that there basket. He said, gesturing to a small empty fishbowl that sat on the stage in front of the piano." He pulled a pen out of his pocket and handed it to the brunette. "Whatever you want to hear, he'll find a way to play, so don't be shy with your requests."

May picked up her drink to grab the napkin underneath. May paused for a moment. Her mind told her no. It would just bring back bad memories, but her heart wanted what her heart wanted, and in the end, her heart won out. She took the pen John held out to her, clicked it, and scrawled the name of the song on the napkin. She then proceeded to get up, walk over to the stage, and drop the napkin in the fishbowl before returning to her seat at the bar and taking a sip of her drink.

Billy stopped playing. He reached into the fishbowl and pulled out the folded up napkin. He spread it out and read the title scrawled out in shaky script. He paused once more, and cleared his throat. Then as he began to play the tune, in a strong clear voice, he sang.

_Always remember this_

_A kiss is just a kiss_

_A sigh is still a sigh_

_Lovers will always still be lovers_

_As life goes by_

And that's when _he_ came out, seething with rage and fury.

"Billy!" The raven haired man shouted. "I thought I told you never to play that song!"

"Sorry, sir. I'm just playing what's requested of me." The piano man responded.

"And just whom requested _that_." He spat out, with obvious distaste.

"Her." Billy replied simply, gesturing to the young brunette sitting at the bar.

…

To make a long story short, things were on a long downhill slope from there.

* * *

So that's what led up to the scene at the airfield earlier that morning. Now, well, no one saw it coming. Through some weird twist of events _he_ was at bar drinking his worries away, and she was on a plane with his cousin, en route to the Sevii Islands to take refuge. Things had certainly taken a turn in the wrong direction. A right turn at Albuquerque if you will…

* * *

_And when two lovers woo_

_They will say I love you_

_And that you can't deny_

_Don't matter what the future brings_

_As life goes by_

* * *

Meanwhile, Ash was sitting at the bar, downing drink out the drink. "Gimme another." One more empty cup on the bar.

Ash sat there, drinking heavily and talking to one of the establishments regulars. Paul, a real estate novelist that never had time for a wife. He was talking with Davy, who was still in the navy, and probably will be for…

Sorry, I'm getting a little sidetracked.

* * *

_Moonlight and love songs- never fade away_

_Hearts still full of love- jealousy and hate_

_Woman meets man and man needs his mate_

_On that you can rely_

* * *

"Why do I need her anyway?" Ask questioned. "I was fine without her then. I'll still be fine now."

What Ash didn't notice, as he continued his rant, was that Paul and Davy, having drank equally as much, if not more, than he, were too lost in their own worlds to hear him speak.

"I stick my neck out for nobody!" He exclaimed, continuing the soliloquy.

* * *

_It's still the same ol' story_

_A tale of love and glory_

_A case of do or die_

_The world will always have its lovers_

_As life goes by_

Billy Held the last note in the song, letting it slowly fade away. He looked up to see how his boss had fared through the performance. What his eyes were met with was not a pretty sight...

That's when a man burst into the room. Billy didn't recognize him, but by the way the man spoke so quickly and frantically, he knew that whatever the man had to say was important.

"What's the matter?" The piano man questioned. "What happened?"

"The-the-the." The man stuttered. "The…they…they…the…"

"The what?" Billy exclaimed. "What!"

"They…they…" The man continued to stutter.

Billy couldn't help but think of the old movie cliché where they smack the hysterical man to get them to stop blabbering. In the movies, it always seemed really cheesy to him, but in real life, it seemed like a somewhat desirable option.

"They b-buh-buh…They bombed the…"

"Out with it already!" Billy exclaimed, getting impatient.

The man took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. "The war's come to Kanto." He said weakly. "They just bombed the Oak Laboratory in Pallet Town…"

* * *

**Shiny Rules by The Shiny Gengar:**

"**#4 Try to be Unpredictable.**

**Note the word **_**"Try"**_**.**

**This isn't a necessity, but it is important to use when you can. Obviously, you'll make the good guys win at the end of your fic, and Ash and May will be together XP. But throwing your readers off and doing something unexpected is always awesome, for you and for them. Even if an ending is kind of predictable, at least make an attempt for something unexpected to happen, **_**drop a bomb on Professor Oak's lab or something.**_**"**

**Challenge accepted.**

**Anyways, I realize that that chapter was a little shorter than usual, but it just felt like a good place to stop. Besides, if I continued until where I planned to stop originally, you'd be reading somewhere around ten thousand words right now.**

**Also, sorry if a lot of it seems like filler right now. We have to get to a certain point in the story before I can start introducing all the characters, and it'll take some time until things get **_**really **_**heated. Don't worry though, I assure you, there will be plenty of plot later on. First we just have to get there…**

**Still, I'd like to know what you think about it, so don't forget to take the time to leave a review, and I hope you'll come back for the next chapter of **_**Love and Malice**_**.**

**So until next time, live long and prosper,**

**-Phil**


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